1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an automatic car wash, and more specifically, to a heated wheel and tire applicator system for cleaning wheels and tires attached to vehicles passing through an automatic car wash.
2. Description of Related Art
The unsightly build-up of road grime, dirt and brake dust on the wheels and tires of vehicles has been an ongoing dilemma for any vehicle owner. Accordingly, wheel and tire cleaning systems have been developed for use with automatic car washes and automatic tire washing systems. Generally, the prior art discloses wheel and tire cleaning systems, which are comprised of a piping system that provides for the delivery of cleaning solution through the piping system to a cleaning solution applicator apparatus, then to the wheels and tires of a vehicle.
A tire cleaning apparatus is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,108,299 to Baldwin. The tire cleaning apparatus described therein is used to remove the protective coating on the side wall portion of a tire after the tire has been mounted on a vehicle wheel. The apparatus is used to clean the side wall of a tire mounted on a vehicle wheel prior to attachment of the tire and wheel to the vehicle. The wheel-mounted tire is placed in the apparatus, where it is exposed to a scrubbing implement, such as a brush. The scrubbing implement is attached to the end of a pipe, tube or hollow arm, which is open at its lower or distal end, to provide the means to discharge liquid between the bristles of the brush. The scrubbing implement is connected at its upper or proximal end to a hose, which is connected to an outflow pipe of a tank. The cleaning solution in the tank is heated by a heating element.
A system for metering a cleaning solution for vehicle wheels is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,660,159 to Larkin, Jr. The system includes means for metering a cleaning solution that is applied to a vehicle wheel for cleaning purposes. The system includes electric tape on the cleaning solution delivery pipes to prevent freezing of the cleaning solution as it travels from a cleaning solution reservoir to the spray nozzles via the main and branch delivery pipes. The main and branch delivery pipes are insulated with the electric tape, all of which is enclosed in a hollow plastic tube. Alternatively, the pipes can be insulated with a heat tube that surrounds the main and branch pipes, which has disposed therein, an electrical heating oil.
Various wheel and tire cleaning systems are disclosed in the prior art. However, there remains a need for a wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator that heats the cleaning solution by means of hot water convection at the point of application of the cleaning solution in an automatic car wash system. The present invention meets this need, and it overcomes the limitations in the prior art by eliminating tire and wheel cleaning brushes and associated power packs, and it also eliminates a heated holding tank for the cleaning solution.
The present invention relates to a heated wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator system for cleaning wheels and tires on a vehicle in a car wash. The heated wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator system is used in a car wash to apply cleaning solution to the wheels and tires on a vehicle passing the applicator box. The heated wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator is comprised of a cleaning solution supply system and a circulating hot water system. The main structure of the heated wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator is an applicator box housing a small hot water tank, part of the cleaning solution piping system and spray nozzles.
The cleaning solution supply system is comprised of a cleaning solution tank, an air diaphragm pump, cleaning solution supply piping with an inline solenoid valve, and spray nozzles all in fluid communication to pump the cleaning solution through the system. The cleaning solution is a mixture of a concentrated cleaner, a commercially available alkaline cleaning solution suitable for tire and wheel cleaning, and water. A diaphragm pump is positioned inline in the cleaning solution supply system to pressurize the cleaning solution in the system. An inline solenoid valve regulates the flow of the pressurized cleaning solution in connection with a trigger device.
A portion of the circulating hot water system is located in the applicator box. The circulating hot water system is comprised of a hot water source, piping, a water pump, and a small hot water tank. Hot water is pumped through the system by a one horsepower water pump in the system. Hot water flows through the system and back through the hot water source for reheating.
The circulating hot water maintains the water in the small hot water tank at a constant temperature between 95 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit, preferably between 100 and 130 degrees Fahrenheit, and more preferably at approximately 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The circulating hot water in the small hot water tank contacts the exterior surface of the distal flow portion of the cleaning solution supply piping in the interior chamber of the small hot water tank. The hot water heats by convection the cleaning solution flowing through the distal end portion of the cleaning solution system.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a wheel and tire cleaning solution applicator system for use in an automatic car wash that implements a hot water convection heating mechanism to heat the cleaning solution at the point of application. Heating the cleaning solution at the point of application is advantageous because the heated wheel and tire cleaning solution cleans road grime and dirt as well as brake dust off of the wheels and tires more effectively than an unheated cleaning solution.